As we move through April, commitments to growing peanuts have been made for almost every field in question. I hope that farmers will be following a good crop rotation sequence in almost every field that is beneficial to peanuts. However, we know there are some fields with more risk than others when considering presence of diseases and nematodes. How can we minimize risk across the board? One way is to make sure other stresses are taken care of as well as possible. Given peanut prices are more attractive than other crops in the rotation; we need to get as much out of the peanut crop as possible. For Virginia market types, I often share a bullet list at grower meetings reminding us of the most critical elements. Here is my list. Apply nutrients based on soil tests and make sure soil pH is at least 5.8 across the entire field. Avoid excessive magnesium and potassium, but apply these if the soil test calls for them. Avoid fields with high levels of zinc if possible. However, if you can get the soil pH up to 6.5, you can plant peanuts even if the zinc index approaches 1,000 (NCDA&CS reports.) Keep in mind that if you have areas of the field where pH is low and zinc is high (we often use an average for both when determining what to do,) you might have some hot spots. Establish good rotations with cotton, corn, sorghum, or sweetpotato and avoid soybeans and tobacco if possible. Plant as close to mid-May as possible (in North Carolina.) Establish 5 plants per foot of row (generally on 36-inch rows.) Plant in conventional tillage on beds unless you have figured out the keys reduced tillage. Digging peanuts on beds reduces pod loss for Virginia market types. Of course, irrigate if possible. However, make sure salt levels are below thresholds and do not put too much water, especially late in the season. Inoculate using a spray in the seed furrow with Bradyrhizobia for biological nitrogen fixation on every acre. Add a peat-based inoculant to seed for insurance, especially on new ground and in fields with long rotations. Apply gypsum prior to pegging but not too early in June. Use recommended rates. If you apply higher rates of gypsum in fields with lower pH, you could see a yield loss. Apply boron and manganese. Boron needs to go on all acres while manganese is often needed only in fields with high pH. However, these are inexpensive, so routine applications are not discouraged. Make sure you are getting enough of each micronutrient with the products you are buying. Some will require multiple applications to reach the threshold amount. Apply prohexadione calcium if you anticipate excessive vine growth. We have plenty of vine growth with Bailey II in North Carolina. Make sure the second spray is needed. If you do not see new growth in the canopy, hold off on the second spray. We often reduce peanut yields when we force a second spray under dry conditions. Dig pods and invert vines based on pod mesocarp color. You cannot get it perfect in every field, but we gain about 1% in yield for each day as we move toward optimum maturity (5-7% less yield when we dig a week early.) Do not drive too fast when digging. Harvest in a timely manner (getting acreage and harvest capacity in line makes a big difference.) Control pests using IPM practices (too many details to go into here.) Lots here and many details within each recommendation. There is also a good bit of nuance in some cases. However, if you can put these practices in place, you will increase the likelihood of success in a major way.